New Love, New Purpose
by evil-catgirl
Summary: When Louis and Gertie first met each other, there will be ups and downs, meanwhile Scrat is searching for a lovely group to call family. (The idea owner and leader/helper for this story is GrayestLobster7 :) GertieXLouis
1. Chapter 1

Louis sighed and looked into the distance. Actually, today was a really nice day and you should complain about nothing. He sat on a narrow cliff, from which one could enjoy a great view. But somehow he just didn't get to be in a good mood, even though the rest around him seemed so happy. Peaches inquired earlier why he wouldn't go for a walk through the forest with them, but then he just felt like the fifth leg of the mammoth. The newlywed couple also needed some time for themselves and he really didn't want to stand in the middle of it.

No, that really didn't have to be, because he wasn't like Sid. When the sloth didn't have its own girlfriend, it stumbled in scenarios of his buddies all the time. And so unaware was the molehog really not, that he didn't realize when he bothered a couple.

But still he found it somehow unfair. Everyone had someone. Even Gladys became young again and found, in her words, a sexy bunny. Whenever he saw them, they clung to each other, smooching. Slowly it gets really strange. Unaware you come out of the ground after breakfast and they are kissing wildly in front of your home. He really wanted to talk about it with Brooke, but he didn't want to disturb her good time either. The saber-toothed tigers had it better there, with their good noses, because they smelt an animal even before they saw it.

"That will hurt!" He suddenly heard from someone behind him and then something hit him on the head. Annoyed, Louis rubbed the struck spot because he recognized the voice immediately. So he got up from his seat to say that he didn't feel like playing these games today. Actually, he rarely had much desire for it, but if it didn't hit him and it didn't hurt anyone seriously, you can laugh about it.

"Go on, disappear again and get on the nerves on someone else!" But today he doesn't feel like laughing. Maybe yes, he does, but not in that way.

"Oh, no!" He heard Eddie startled call in his direction.

"It's really true. He got infected with Mannyitis." Crash added in the same silly tone.

"Really now?" The prickly one questioned and believed the oldest mammoth wouldn't like that this was a disease now, because it often behaves a little moody. In moments like this he really understood that. The molehog crossed his paws and walked away from the idiots, hoping the two just would leave him alone.

"Yes,yes. Just a little closer."

"What do you mean..?" Before Louis could finish his sentence, he noticed how a stone loosened at his feet, a sling pulled him up and threw him into the air. Sometimes he could really curse the brothers, but with time he should really know better. He thought that the two of them have long since earned that someone sometimes plays a prank on them. It must be a really good one, that the twins leave their paws off this game for a while. But Peaches was too kind to put her uncle's in such a position, and the other young mammoths from the Brat Pack were too lazy to do so, even though the possums always like annoy anyone.

At least the brothers refrained little bit from it by their new friends. Brooke got just nice pranks if anything, because even Crash and Eddie thought she was an angel. Or Sid got the double charge. Louis had learned nothing in all that time that he didn't step into those traps anymore. What he also didn't notice, where the flight went, because he flew with his back first through the area.

"Watch out down there!" He still tried to warn the animals nearby and wondered each time, whether the brothers calculate the route, that he always landed on soft ground. Well, more or less. But these pranks could have killed him already, so he kept the idea that the opossums were thinking a bit about their stuff.

And then he actually hit someone's head. At any rate, that was Louis's assumption, because everything turned before his eyes, that he couldn't be sure.

"Ouch! What the.." When the spiky one heard that from above him, it instantly put him in a state of shock. He couldn't move much anyway, because he was held by two claws. Wasn't he thinking before that the new inflow of the herd was spared from the jokes? Maybe he wasn't seeing the attacks because he didn't spend the whole day near the twins.

All this didn't help him when he was suddenly turned around. Probably because that one could see him in the face. The Dakotaraptor named Gertie looked at him in surprise, but also a little grim. The others could say what they wanted, but he still had great respect for these raptors. Respect and fear was the same thing for him with these dinosaurs.

"Oh, it's you." Gertie just said, tilting her head slightly sideways.

"Why are you flying through the air? And you really should learn to control your body better. The thing just now hurts." Louis exhaled with relief, not even knowing he was stopping to breathe when his counterpart didn't sound as angry as expected. Maybe she was a little annoyed, but who would not be, if spikes hit you on the head.

"I..didn't..want..They..were..it .." He stammered around here, than he realized, first, that he had never really talked to her before, and second, that both of them were completely alone in this area here. He checked briefly the right and then to the left. Yes, no one would really notice it, if the Dakotaraptor would eat him now. She could swallow him down in one motion.

No, take down the paws, he thought a little self-confidently. He wasn't as anxious as he used to be. Despite his size, he could bravely look towards her.

"I think it hit you more than me. Are you ok?" Gertie wanted to know from him and because of that he actually looked at her.

"I think so." He answered, wondering what he should say, that the Dino set him down on the ground.

"Um, can you let me down?" He tried the simplest sentence in his head.

"Oh, of course. I didn't want to eat you or something like that." She explained in a strange mood. Louis hoped it wouldn't be a hunting scene right now, where he had to run away first. He simply didn't have the energy for that. Bury himself in the earth and pray that it was enough was the only thing that seemed possible right now.

The molehog was dropped without further ado and then nothing happened. They both just stood there in an uncomfortable mood. Actually, he should go away before Gertie changes her mind, that he should be the meal. But he had a good time talking to Roger, who was also a raptor and somehow deviated greatly from the behavior of his species. Unfortunately, the male Dakotaraptor was only too happy to explore the area from the air on this beautiful day. And flying made Louis sick. Well, he has no head for the heights and felt a lot better in the depths of the earth, as between the clouds.

"So." Wow that was a good way to start a conversation, the smaller one thought sarcastically. He also didn't know about what he should talk to her. On the other paw, she could just fly away when she was bored.

"So?" Strangely enough, the Raptor repeated what he was saying.

"I'm sorry that I hit you on the head. I stepped into a trap of the possum brothers." On that, he heard a low and displeased growl from her.

"Yes, it's funny if it doesn't catch you. I saw them the other day as they threw each other into mud. Are those mischief's going on all day long with this?"

"Of course. Crash and Eddie don't have big obligations except these jokes and get on the nerves from all of us. I would like to prank them sometimes too. Unfortunately, Peaches is too busy and the rest of the gang has no desire to do so." Louis answered, speaking of course about Ethan and the other mammoths.

"I think I can see them approaching because they want to know for sure where you've landed." The Dino looked around first and then strangely to one side. The spiky one did that too. A few red berries came in his field of vision.

"I have an idea, but if you don't like it.." Louis started to grin, probably because the same thought was coming to him. Immediately, he said so quickly, than it was rustling in the bushes not far away from them. Both thought the plan was good and tried to do it in a hurry before the twins found out about it too early.

The Dakotaraptor had his difficulties as they both prepared everything behind dense leaves, because the little one next to her was suddenly like transformed. Before, he still seemed to be afraid of her. She knew those faces, she saw them many times in her life. But now, she saw something else. This was all new territory for her and she felt uncomfortable. She thought a few times about going back alone, where she came from with her family. But there also conspecifics are waiting for her and without her father, she will have to look for a male to survive down there. What would come then? Lay eggs and be mother? It shook Gertie at the thought.

"Are you cold?" Came the question out from below, where a molehog stood with its paws full of red berries. In picking, the guy was really fast, she thought.

"No." She explained to break the uncomfortable silence and quickly devoted herself to her task.

"We don't have to do that if you don't want to." The spiky continued, but she thought of the stink bombs that hit her a while ago and that made her a little angry again. She had to bathe for a long time in flower water from the female sloth, so that the foul smell went away.

"We're going through this now. Their lesson is long overdue." Louis swallowed as the Dino next to him grinned so nasty. He certainly wasn't sure, but he was already smeared all over with the berries and that shouldn't be in vain.

"You're right. Psst! There they are already." He whispered to his new ally and both watched the opossums through the bushes.

"Did you calculate the flight path wrong?" Eddie inquired of his brother, because he couldn't find the molehog nowhere.

"No this can't be. Unless he's got heavier or lighter. Hm, but he really is not here. Wiener?" Crash started shouting for the prickly one, because he didn't understand that suddenly he should have just dissipated in the air.

"Hey guys. Are you looking for something specific?" Gertie inquired, hoping she played her part well. The brothers looked at her and she noticed that their eyes were wandering around the red stuff on her beak, neck and chest. The opossum eyes got already a little bigger with shock. The Raptor had to hold back, not to grin, than the plan seemed to work.

"Um... you have something there." Eddie said a little sheepishly and pointed into her face.

"Oh, sorry you had to see that, but the saber-toothed tigers said eating cadavers is ok, and here was just something fresh. I thought, before anyone sees this, I eat..I'll put it away."

"That... something didn't happen to have spikes?" Crash inquired feebly, holding on to his brother. She spat out one of those spikes with red berry juice.

"Yes, those things getting stuck in my teeth. Poor guy. Must've fallen off the tree, as squishy as it looks." The two striped ones looked like they were in a heap of misery.

"What have we done?" Eddie was already close to tears.

"We? It was your idea to throw him through the air! Maybe it's not Louis at all and someone else fell off the tree." Crash mixed in just as well and tried to somehow save the whole situation.

"Yes...it can only be like this. You are going to look at it and then we'll know more." Eddie was pushed forward.

"No, you laid out the vine and look at it now!" The two then began to argue. It was quickly too much for the Dakotaraptor and so she pulled the prepared corpse out of the bushes.

"Do you know him or not?" Lifeless, the molehog body hung upside down in front of the brothers and both were close to fainting.

"Where are...his legs?" It came almost soundless from crash.

"Yeah, I just nibbled them first." Gertie made it worse and held the dripping Louis even closer. So far, the brothers could only see the back and the front paws still hung down. Slowly she turned the dead one over to the two of them. The spiny one did his best not to breathe loudly. Then the Dino squeezed him lightly. That was their agreed sign and he came back to life.

"Why? Why did you kill me?" He inquired as he let more red berry juice out of his mouth.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!" The possums shrieked and ran. They didn't even look back and disappeared quickly in the undergrowth. The two remaining ones just started laughing after the 'dead' was let down.

"They've never run so fast." Louis recognized when he stopped laughing.

"I thought first, they don't believe that. But they didn't even look that I spit out thorns and not one of your spines."

"That was a really good idea." Admitted the molehog and found the prank so good that he forgot who he was talking to. He was also picking sticky berries from his body.

"Yeah, but when you spat out more 'berry blood', I think the color got out of their fur."

"Well, then they know how it is." Slowly Louis noticed how the juice of the fruit began to stick more.

"Do you think we've gone too far?" Odd that this concern came from her. Should not Louis say that? But he was only pleased that he could finally take revenge on the twins after years.

"They sure can handle that." After these words silence came again and no matter how much he pulled at his fur, the red stuff wasn't so easy to come out again. For the better Louis had to go wash himself. Not that he was against water, he just rarely went alone to the river or lake. Thanks to Peaches he was able to swim, but that didn't mean that he could last long. In addition, the next clear water was a piece away. More dirt would stick to him through the earth and walking would take also a while. Well, he didn't have to do anything else anyway.

"I'll go and wash the juice from my fur." The spiky one told the dino next to him, who immediately took off in the air. Hm, that was it then with the company. Even if it felt strange, at least he was not alone.

"There's a small spring up there." The raptor announced and suddenly landed in front of him again, which made him jump back a bit, because he didn't hear her approaching.

"Ok, but there is also a steep cliff over there and I'm not good at climbing." Not that Louis has not tried it before.

"I...you know..could fly you up." Gertie couldn't believe how hard this was for her. When they laughed together about the possums, the tension seemed to have disappeared. Now the air between them felt so thick again. She wondered how her brother can always talk so easily to anyone. Well, he also really talks to everyone. The female Raptor, on the other claw, was already bored all morning because she couldn't find her brother, and her father spent men's time with his new buddies. That was too silly for her and so she tried to find another pastime.

"Fine. But only because the other way to the next water just seems too far. Besides, it starts to itch under my fur. The prank was good, but I wouldn't have thought it would end so unpleasantly." The smaller one answered suddenly and interrupted Gertie in her thoughts. And what now, because she thought rather the other would deny it.

"How does it work now? I don't just want to climb up on you." Said the molehog to her and that surprised her, because he did do that constantly with the mammoths. Okay, she didn't want him to pull on her either, so she leaned down. She hoped that her father didn't see that now. The Raptor didn't know why, but somehow she thought he wouldn't like it. When nothing happened, she squinted aside. Her new company still seemed to hesitate.

"I'm not biting." That made the spiky one jump. She probably was supposed to leave such sentences out of the conversation if he really was so scared of her.

"You must not.."

"You're bleeding! That must have happened when I hit you earlier. I'm sorry." With that the molehog climbed carefully on her back.

"Hurry up! We should cleanse the wound so it does not fester and gets more painful." Gertie heard from behind.

"Hold on tight." She said in a tone she didn't even know from herself. She also didn't have much time to ponder about that, because the spring was not far away.

"Do you need help with that?" She was asked after she landed and the little one immediately jumped away from her.

"Why would I need help from someone like..." But she didn't finish her sentence when she saw his scared face.

"I didn't mean to..." The Dakotaraptor turned away, thinking it would be the best to leave. She wasn't good at talking to others and making friends, like her brother.

"Wait." It came clearly from behind. She sighed and wondered why this little thing was bothering.

"Why?" She inquired, than he certainly just wanted to be polite. She had heard from Julian that Pricklybro is a nice guy. Although she didn't always understand every word of Peaches husband, but everyone finds the little one nice.

"Because you're still full of berry juice and that can really stick if you don't wash it off now."

"I can go somewhere else if you feel uncomfortable around me." Gertie replied without turning back.

"Why should I feel uncomfortable with you?" She rolled her eyes and turned back to her interlocutor on that. He was pouring water over himself with a bowl-like wooden bark before trying to get the red stuff out of his fur.

"You can't tell me that the fact that I'm a carnivore does not make you nervous."

"Diego and Shira are too. I admit, your family makes me nervous. A lot. Ok, with Roger, I'm not such a bunch of nerves, but you can have a good talk with him."

"Aha. So not with me or my dad." She crossed her wings slightly offended.

"Well, your father is more like Manny, so I don't think he wants to talk to me. I mean, you can probably talk to him well if you find the right topic."

"For example, when to kill which animal the fastest." Gertie realized again what had been wrong when she was suddenly shocked looked at.

"No.. I didn't mean.. I certainly didn't want to.." Excuses were as hard for her as for her father, because they both can't overlook their ego. But why should she apologize to this tiny creature? Finally, she flew him up here to wash himself. The prickly one should be more grateful.

"Should we start again?" Louis suggested, although he was still slightly uncomfortable. But after his fur looked clean again, he at least wanted to try to talk to her. The worst he could lose was time. He hoped anyway. In addition, the molehog also recognized how difficult it was for the female Raptor to settle in here. Surely she only needed someone to take her by the paw or claw. He heard earlier that the saber-toothed tiger was talking to Gertie. But about what exactly?  
Silently, he was briefly thoughtfully looked at by his counterpart.

"I can understand that I'm not exactly the perfect role for the first friend on the world up here, but.."

"You want to be my friend?" The prickly one was interrupted and he looked up from the water, because that now wasn't sounding as dangerous as before. If he didn't know better, he would say she behaved like a shy girl.

"I know, this is not the best idea, but.." He wanted to suggest that she could meet other animals after him, once she got settled in, but she didn't let him speak to the end again.

"Well, we just met. I am Gertrude. But everyone calls me Gertie. You should do that too if you love your life. Got it! No, that was not uhm..nice. Wasn't it?" She looked uncertainly at her claws and played with them.

"It will get better. I'm Louis." After all, the molehog has already met animals under worse circumstances.

* * *

Not far from the newly found friends, another group was loitering around.

"Katie, you are sneezing for the third time today. If you have a cold, just stay away from me!" Complained Steffie, because her friend was constantly frightening her with her noises. For the female mammoth, it would be even worse if the blonde sneezes on her delicious food. So she pushed this far enough away before she went to her salad.

"Someone's thinking about her." Joked Meghan, grinning as if she knew some secret.

"Do you not get hiccups then?" Added the affected mammoth and thought for a moment, because she wasn't so sure anymore.

"AHHHHHH! A RAT!" Steffie suddenly screamed in a shrill tone that her friends jumped back in shock. Then something small ran agitated around while, Steffie wanted to step on it and continued screaming.

"Ahhh! Now it's over here!" Called Meghan disgusted and tried to step on it too, but closed her eyes while doing it. Katie just wanted her friend to stop screaming so shrilly, so she pretended to want to hurt that something also. Of course it didn't happen, because injuring other animals went against her principles.

It was not long before the screaming and wild pounding was also noticed by the men of the Brat Pack.

"Girls, what are you doing here again?" Ethan wanted to know a little annoyed, because he was dozing right now in the sun. On a rock where he and his buddy could observe other bathing mammoths.

"Get this rat out of here, but fast!" Steffie told her boyfriend that his ears were ringing. He shook his head briefly to get rid of the sound on his ears.

"Calm down first! I don't see any rats here." Were these things not small gray with a long pink tail? He was not sure right now. But Ethan was viciously looked at by his lady and immediately pushed by her to a rock where greenery stuff laid spread over it. Something small and fluffy trembled in the middle.

"That's not a rat." At least he thought that.

"I knew it." Katie said in the background and the other two girls rolled their eyes, because the blonde again turned to a know-it-all.

"I think the little guy is more afraid of you than you are of him." Added the only male mammoth in the round, because his buddy was still lazily lying on the stone over there.

"Come here you.." What kind of animal was that again? He couldn't remember, but he didn't want to admit that to others.

"You furry animal. Everything is alright. She can't hurt you anymore." The animal sniffed carefully at his trunk, because he holds it out and then it even hopped on his head.

"It's so cute.. I mean in a cool way." He said and didn't know why the women made such a mess before.

"If it bites you and you get rabies, I'll break up with you." Steffie announced to him and as she turned away from Ethan, he sighed a little annoyed, because his girlfriend liked to exaggerate.

"And now bring it away from here!" She also commanded him, but he didn't really listen, as the little thing hopped happily on top of him.

"Now I can have something like Peaches, too." Meghan and Katie laughed a bit at these words. Only then did Ethan realize that he was saying it aloud.

"Do not let Louis hear that." The blonde mammoth said amused, than she didn't know that the guy was jealous of Peaches friendship with the molehog. Anyway, it sounded for her like that.

"Or your best buddy over there. Afterwards, he becomes jealous and ditches you." Meghan also had to comment on the topic. It was a little embarrassing for the male mammoth, because it turned out after the pirate attack that Louis is cooler than he thought before. Yes, they were all friends, but molehog didn't care so much about hanging out with them as with Peaches alone. Sometimes he wondered why, but he wasn't interested enough to ask.

"You're so funny, girls." He gave out insulted, but pretended as if he stood over it and trudged to his buddy to show him what he has found

* * *

**GrayestLobster7:  With Louis and Gertie getting to know, it can get a bit rocky at first. And as for Scrat, Ethan and the Brat Pack Round him first. Will Gertie finally get over her mean instincts by Louis? And will Scrat find the perfect family that is right for him? Stay tuned in this friendship packed conclusion of "New Love, New Purpose".**


	2. Chapter 2

"That burns!" Gertie scolded loudly, as her new companion again stroked something stinking over the small injury on her head. She didn't understand why the little one made such fuss about it. It was just a scratch that bleeds a little more. Nevertheless, after the bath, he gathered a few herbs together and crushed them on a stone. The green and foul-smelling stuff, he smeared now on her skin.

"That's it." Louis explained reassuringly, because in his opinion, such a Raptor should actually endure more. After all, he had already experienced the herbal mixture on his own body. She got up again immediately, probably the Dakotaraptor is uncomfortable getting down in front of him. Anyway, he saw it like that.

"What are you doing?" He was probably asked because he smeared the rest into his fur.

"That also makes shiny fur and smells good."

"Yes, like my dad's favorite roast stea... salad." The Dino mentally cursed herself again, because like this a friendship is never happening, when she kept chattering about her former eating habits.

"What's in there for longer, you will not get out until tomorrow." Added the prickly guy and distributed the herbs in his fur. Would be a pity if he left rest here just here. He had done more, as always, because he usually has to apply the mixture on thick fur and not on mere reptile skin.

"Huh?"

"These habits. It will take a while to unlearn some of them. That is, if you want that yourself too." Then the molehog looked at her again directly. On the one thing, because he had nothing left in his paws to disturb in his fur. On the other, he wanted to see her facial features. Maybe she'll think it over again and attack him.

"Of course, I.."

"If you feel better about it, you're the first carnivore that I spend my time with on my own, and that's why I have to get my habits under control."

"Yes, you can see how you want to escape at any moment." She spoke more of his instincts, but said nothing more.

"If we endure a day together without you eating me and without me running away, then the rest will work out as well. Do not you think so?" Gertie's eyes went astounded and he repeated his words in his head. He noticed something.

"So we do not have to spend the whole day together. That would be too much at the beginning. We just got to know each other and so on." Louis didn't know why he nervously waved his paws in the air.

"Don't we have to talk and spend time together as much as we can? I have no idea of this, you're the friendship expert." The Raptor might not realize it, but it sounded very sad in his ears what she just said. The spiky one wondered if she had no one else to talk to in her previous life except her family. He knew what that was like, because before Peaches only molehogs talked to him. Also because he did not dare to go out so often in his childhood.

"Did I say something stupid again? Or why are you staring at me like this?" With that, the smaller one awoke from his thoughts and immediately averted his eyes.

"No you haven't. And you're right, we should spend more time together. That is, if you don't already have something better to do later today. "

"Not really, or did I just look busy while standing around in the area?" He quickly shook his head at her annoyed tone.

"Are we staying here or should we go somewhere else?" Louis tried to change the subject.

"The emphasis here is on 'going', because we both can't go away from this place." Gertie pointed a wing over the edge and he looked down. Downhill running or climbing is probably not the best idea. Louis could have thought this right away, because he didn't come up here without help. Before that, he also believed that he would see another way from above to come down again. He also didn't want to urge his new companion to fly him down again.

"Come on. Jump up." With that the Dakotaraptor lowered his head again in front of him.

"You do not have to, if.."

"Hm, you can also stay up here and enjoy the view." Of course that was just sarcasm, because from here you couldn't see much, because tall trees blocked the view.

"Ok, I'm getting up." But as always, the prickly guy approached with caution.

"Was that so difficult?" The dino inquired of the other as they landed again at the foot of the mountain.

"Actually, I don't like to fly, because I always get sick in the air." He admitted, even though this time he didn't feel any nausea. Surely only because the flight from up there to here was so short.

"That's no wonder the way you flick through the area and hit the innocent ones." She said a little amused and grinned. Again he tried not to be rude, because when Gertie grinned, you could see her sharp and pointed teeth.

"Very funny. That's more of an involuntary fly." Louis explained and didn't really know what to do next. At least until a stomach growled.

"Just ignore that." Told the bigger one of the two.

"If you are hungry then .."

"Just so you know it, that's not because of you and this marinade on your fur." She waved her wings in front of her to emphasize what she said.

"If you wanted to devour me for that, you probably already would have done so. Does the smell really irritate you that much?" Only then did Louis realize that she got even more space between them. As if this had not been generous before. Well, he did something for himself too.

"A little bit." Gertie admitted reluctantly.

"It's only because I'm hungry and never had to control myself before. It really doesn't help that you smell pretty yummy." She added, probably licked her teeth and showed them more thoughtlessly. The smaller one realized that they had to find a substitute meal for her quickly.

"How about if you.." But again he didn't come to the end of his sentence.

"But I wanted to spend some more time with you!" The Raptor interrupted him a little bit louder and then sighed. The spiky one could not look at her, because she had turned away.

"It doesn't help if I let my stupid stomach growling. So I'm going to throw something in quickly. But then I will come back. Understood?" The molehog couldn't really understand her mood swings from nice to angry. Maybe because the dino was wrestling with herself a little bit. He couldn't really judge that yet.  
But for now he had to solve another problem. The fight against hunger. He did not have such a big appetite for eating, because he also ate these red berries, but unfortunately they do not make you tired in the long run.

"Wait a moment! We can also eat together. It's almost lunchtime." He suggested quickly, before she could move into the air, because he didn't want that Gertie finds a better pastime and he had to be alone again. So far, they are both doing well, he did not want to think about his last option. That would be going home.

"I just wanted to suggest that you look a bit for dry wood. Can you distract yourself with it for a while more?" He inquired of his companion, wondering what he could do for her the quickest way.

"I think so." With that the Dakotaraptor flew away. The one left behind hoped she didn't do anything unreasonable just because of his stupid act. Now that he thought about it, he would also eat a cricket dipped in these herbs. His fur didn't need an herbal-cure so much that he could keep off to smear himself with the paste in the following time.

He hurriedly searched for a large bark from the tree, which had already fallen off. Searched and found. There were also some fat beetles that he could take with him under it. He put two little ladybugs on a leaf again, because they are supposed to bring good luck. Besides, they taste strange anyway. Now he was looking for another spot with loose earth nearby. Earthworms usually stayed there. That was quickly found. So he laid the bark off beside his place to dig.

That wouldn't be easy, because a molehog like him was fed up with a few worms, but that was certainly not true for a carnivorous Raptor. It gave him a bit courage that he had once managed to get enough for a mammoth. It wasn't so easy to fetch the favorite fruits of Manny and he could not start days before, because once the things have been picked, they quickly going moldy. But what does one not do all because of a birthday and a bit, because he wanted to have more recognition of the oldest mammoth in their herd.

Since Louis was very well acquainted with the underground area, he quickly found some edible specimens. But to satisfy Gertie's hunger for a while, he would have to do more. Maybe he should think about what they could do after dinner. Just walking around, then she is going to be bored in the long run.

* * *

"And how do we call that little Fluff?" Ethan's friend Buddy inquired, when he was shown the saber-toothed squirrel. The male mammoth did not understand why Steffie sometimes got a hysterical attack for every little thing. It's just a small thing with long teeth and a furry coat. But he rejected the thought just as fast as it had come. After all, this was Ethan's girlfriend and therefore his problem. He himself didn't jump up for a long time when she started screaming.

"How about Cleany? Do you understand, because it cleans the tiny paws." He added to his question.

"Dude, you also wash your hooves, but still nobody calls you Washy or Hoovy." Ethan gave his opinion on the first name suggestion freely out.

"Fluffypuff." Buddy announced his next idea and then his friend turned around to him, briefly to stare at him speechless.

"Is that a yes?"

"If someday you become the father of a little mammoth, will you call it Mammothy?" Confused, the dark animal glanced over at the ladies and wondered if he had missed anything.

"Wow, you ask me really difficult questions here. Did you just find that cuddly something or do I have to know more?" Buddy moved closer to the other to whisper his last sentence. A sigh followed, and the reddish mammoth briefly held his trunk tip on his forehead.

"No. I just mean that you can't give someone such names."

"Ok, I already got it."

Scrat wasn't interested in the talk and hopped back and forth between the two big animals. Almost as if he was looking for something. But the mammoth didn't notice that.

"Hm, how about Fury then?" Came a new name from Buddy.

"Because the little one has..Ouch! He also has claws. So Clawy." Ethan rolled his eyes on this.

"You know what, great idea. I call myself Trunky from now on. You are Hoovy. Katie is Blondy. Steffie is... Overacty and Meghan is Tusky."

"For real?"

"No. We all have names that are not so trivialized. Come on, we need something cool." Ethan challenged his buddy and kept the bouncing little animal from his tail, because he was sensitive there.

"For complaining about my suggestions here, you didn't say that much yet. How would you name your child..Ups, of course I mean this fur thing?"

"That hurts." It came a little louder from the reddish mammoth.

"Hm, that's way too long and not catchy at all. Maybe if I say it a few times. Thathurts, Thathurts, .."

"No, he bit me."

"Oh, maybe the little one is hungry. If the girls have been chasing him around, I can imagine that his little stomach now demands something. But if he is a carnivore we can't keep him."

"Oh nonsense." Ethan said, looking around until he spotted a pine cone.

"Okay, but you let him nibble on your ears. I'm so attached to mine." Buddy continued babbling.

"No, I think that thing is vegetarian. Here my little one." But of course Scrat didn't like cones because they were just inedible. So he kicked the thing out of the mammoth trunk.

"Wow. So he doesn't like pine cones. But did you see this kick? Mega crass. I wish I could do that." Buddy felt so inspired that he wanted to try it himself and kicked the tree with his hind leg, where he was always lying underneath. The tree shook it and then it was raining acorns on the three animals. Immediately, the squirrel jumped around happily to catch as many as possible.

"Buddy, you'll probably have to practice a bit, but you have satisfied our little buddy for now."

"How so? That was exactly what I wanted to achieve. "

"Yes, of course." Ethan answered and finally got a name.

"We call him Little Plush."

"Do you need something to cuddle? Someone probably doesn't want to sleep alone at night." Buddy teased him immediately.

"Oh shut up! How do you like the name?" With that, the reddish mammoth turned to the squirrel.

"Your name is now Little Plush. Is the name not great?" He announced smartly and pointed his trunk at the smaller one. 'Little Plush' rolled actually his eyes on it, because first it was disturbed collecting acorns and secondly, he certainly didn't want to get such a stupid name. Hurried and always careful that no one stole even one acorn, he put together his real name from sticks.

"Lo .." Began Buddy to read what was written on the ground.

"You have to see it from this side." Ethan said and was already a little down that their fur thing already had a name.

"Scrat. Oh, yes, now that makes more sense. Somehow. Your name is Scrat." But the rodent with the name was no longer interested in the other two, because as long as he had so many acorns, he was satisfied.

* * *

The molehog looked around again, but again no Dakotaraptor came by. Thereny he needed a while with his work. Digging for the food, building a fire pit, preparing the food and lighting a fire. Actually, there was really no need to send Gertie out for the search of wood, because there were enough branches around here. He also thought that she would stay close. Now, through his mission, Louis arrived at what he wanted to avoid before. Namely loneliness. Surely she found him too boring and sought someone else to pass the time.

It pulled him down a bit. The work that flickered warm and smelled delicious in front of him didn't bother him. The hope that he could make friends without someones help, was more destroyed. But it was not just that. Maybe he wanted to prove inwardly that he is not a mammoth fetishist. Meghan had mentioned something like that. It was just a joke, she said, but he didn't know the Brat Pack until yesterday. Just because Peaches became his first and best friend does not mean that he only makes friends with mammoths. Louis could confidently say that he got along well with everyone in the herd. On the other side, getting along well with someone has nothing to do with friendship, but he couldn't help thinking that he still prefers to do something with Julian and P..

"Ah!" He quickly emerged from his mind as he looked to the side and someone was sitting there. In shock he almost jumped into the fire.

"How do you do that?!" He wanted to know in a louder tone from Gertie as he put his paw on his chest to calm his throbbing heart.

"You um ... looked so thoughtful and I didn't want to bother you. But I also didn't want to fly away again. There was only this option left open. So.." As she said that, he looked up at her. The Raptor behaved so restrained again. Actually, he was glad she wasn't showing her teeth and bellowing, because he was raising his voice. Normally nobody could sneak up on him so well. Probably because she always came flying from the air.

"Already ok. I'm sorry that I just became loud towards you. But can you announce yourself in the future before landing next to me? That would be nice."

"My dad keeps shouting around all the time, so you're not really bothering me and as loud as him you're not. Announcing myself? Ok, why not. But I don't have to say anything stupid, right?" Louis didn't know how she came to the last sentence, but otherwise he didn't have much idea about her.

"No of course not. No nonsensical names or anything."

"Like Wiener?" The spiky one then dropped his shoulders, for he hoped earlier that she had not heard or remembered that. Maybe it was better to tell the dino about it right away, so they don't have to go over the topic again.

"I got the nickname from Peache's father." That was thrown to his head involuntarily.

"Why?"

"Probably because of my size." He explained a little annoyed, because even if Manny has not used the name for a long time, some idiotic possums were still doing it.

"You still don't look like it after all."

"I agree. It was not easy at first to convince the name giver of the opposite." He turned back to the food.

"Because you were scared of the mammoth?" He sighed again.

"Yes, unfortunately. Just so for information, if you want to make friends with someone who is fearless and courageous, then you are with me in the wrong place." Much clearer you can't explain it probably, thought the molehog and found it a bit embarrassing. But friendships should start honestly.

"There we are already two." Perplexed, his head jerked in her direction.

"What?" He didn't bring out more than that, because he didn't really think that she understood fear.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not afraid of anything or anyone! You could say I'm the complete opposite of you. My problem ... Actually, it is not a direct problem. Only my brother thinks so. Well, it's a bit complicated then, because I tend to look for challenges. Unfortunately, these were seldom non-violent and I often bit myself into situations. Several times even literally. No.. I did not mean to say that... So what I meant is.." There it was again, the very strange moment. That's why Gertie could never talk to others without her brother or father's presence. For her it was also good to have others from the herd always nearby. Just don't get into a conversation face to face. The matter wasn't complicated by the fact that she might have to talk about her life. Normally, she could now fill the oppressive silence with her bragging about how many bloody acts of violence she has already committed. But she didn't believe that Louis would be interested in it. Most likely, she will only give him more fear with such stories.

"I said old habits are not that easy to change. As long as you talk like that, that doesn't bother me. We have already noticed that you don't want to eat me." The female raptor shook her head on it again to confirm that.

"The rest is still comes around." Was communicated to her with a small smile. Gertie wasn't sure, because the spiky one looked into the fire. She did that too.

"And you are no longer hungry." Then she heard after a moment of silence.

"Yes, I also looked for something to eat while searching for wood." She informed him sincerely, because he was already allowed to know. Then something came to her mind again.

"So it was not a rat like you or something. It already swam in the water. Not dead. I had to catch it ..but.." Annoyed by herself, she just stopped talking because she thought she sounded stupid. She almost stuttered like Roger. He did that only when he was yelled at or got threatened. But her new companion really doesn't seem threatening. Why did she have these language difficulties?

"Did you eat fish?"

"Exactly that. It just didn't occur to me." How could she forget something what she just quickly stuffed into her before, the raptor lady rebuked herself inwardly. On the other claw, she didn't find it fair that the the little one suddenly seemed so relieved. Did he really think she would eat him or the next being nearby? Gertie tried to shake it off, she had time for such thoughts later, when she went to sleep.

"Pity." She heard abruptly and she should have guessed, because she certainly disappointed Louis.

"Listen to me! Shall I starve here ?!" She changed to the aggressive defense mode immediately.

"Well, if you make a fire here and grill something, but what about..." The female dino stopped when a stick was held out to her, whereupon something stuck through. It also smelled very tempting. Amazed, she pointed at herself with a claw.

"For me?" She inquired uncertainly again.

"Yes. Now that you are already full, I hope that it doesn't stuff too much in the stomach. But I should have asked you first, if you want that at all. So it's okay if you don't want to eat it." She really didn't know what to say. This little thing took the trouble to get her something to eat. And then also grilled the food. Gertie decided to eat at least some of this weird wrap. After all, she only ate as many fish as needed, because she wanted to come back quickly, so that no one else stole the time of her new friend.

"Give it to me!" She ordered, because she didn't know it any other way and tore the stick out of his paw. Of course, she was already careful that she didn't hurt him. Then she sniffed the stick again before carefully biting off. Slowly she melted it on her tongue and then took more.

"I don't know what that is, but you can eat it. Hm, somehow it seems familiar to me." She proclaimed truthfully and the branch emptied quickly.

"Um, well. Herbs are in it."

"These can't be just herbs."

"Mushrooms." Was it just her or was his voice softer?

"And?" She asked clearly louder, because she didn't like in which direction that went.

"I hear?"

"So there are herbsfruitsinsectsvegetablesmushrooms in it." Her companion talked so fast that she didn't understand all the contents. But one thing she understood very well and that made her really mad again.

"Herbs." She began to patiently repeat things and a swallowing was heard.

"Exactly."

"Fruits."

"Also."

"And then the INSECTS come, is it true?" She gritted her teeth with a certainty. Carefully, her companion nodded, and then she jumped angrily into the air and flew higher.

"ROGER! YOU'LL STILL GET A BEATING TODAY!" Gertie shouted so loud that her stupid brother could hear it. It also echoed a lot. But she didn't care, because she just found out that in the past her brother always let them eat insects when it was time for him to get the food. Her dad and her should have thought Roger was deceiving them with this. With one leap she settled again at the fire place.

"I am really sorry. I didn't know you didn't like insects. Your brother always eats them, so I thought.. I should have just asked before. I hope you are not allergic to it. Otherwise we have to.." She lets the spiky one talk, but she also realized what caused her outbreak again. The body language of the other was again scared. The dino took a deep breath, hoping her anger would fly away.  
"No, that's not it. Your food is great. I just do not like it when you lie to me."

"That's right, you don't do it among friends. I really should have asked before you.."

"You didn't lie to me. Besides, I knew in advance that the skewer couldn't be meat and I still took it." Talking apparently helped to normalize the tense situation, the female raptor thought.

"I messed this up, didn't I?" She finally asked, not thinking of anything else. As much as she wanted this friendship thing to work, she shouldn't scare Louis for it.

"Every beginning is difficult. It just doesn't work from now to later. What do you mean, how I used to be? Every time Peaches hopped around, I hid because my parents told me I could be trampled." The molehog smiled as he spoke of his memory. She guessed it was because he was not embarrassed to tell such stories only as a grown-up. Gertie would also like to get rid of a few things, but she didn't know funny or cute children's stories.

"Worse was when I saw her father for the first time. You know, I thought at the time as a little molehog that Peaches had to be a full-grown mammoth. But she was just as kid like me. I didn't come out of the ground the rest of the day and just talked to her from the holes."

"She's your best friend, huh?"

"Yes." The smaller one seemed to revel in beautiful memories as he smiled into the fire. But they did not need that either now, because it didn't help their friendship.

"Make me some more of those skewers. My outburst just made me hungry again." Her companion didn't seem to mind her rough manner, because it looked as if he enjoyed preparing more food. Gertie thought that she could get used to that here.

* * *

**GrayestLobster7: Things are getting good for Louis and Gertie, and as for Scrat, he showed Ethan and Buddy his name, via sticks. Will Louis and Gertie keep up the friendship? And will this be Scrat's new life with Ethan and the Brat Pack? Stay tuned for this snack hungry conclusion of "New Love, New Purpose".**


	3. Chapter 3

"So I have a clumsy brother you've already met. What about your family? Any annoying siblings?" Gertie inquired after realizing that she was eating too much of the skewers. But she didn't realize that until her companion ran out of the stuff. Because she didn't want to brazenly ask for more, she distracted herself by interrogating him a little.

"Well, yes." He paused and scratched his head for some reason before explaining the main members of his molehog family.

"What?! How many? And then so many aunts and uncles and... How do you remember so many names? I still have trouble remembering all the names of the herd." The smaller one laughed a little at that.

"But you still remember my name, right? It was just a joke. My mother keeps confusing her grandchildren too. In that sense, it's probably not that easy with over one hundred children." The raptor was a little speechless, but quickly found the thought of before.

"But if you have so many people in your family, why do you spend most of your time with the herd? I mean, you could have done something with your family today." Gertie rebuked herself inwardly for encouraging her new friend to spend time with someone else.

"Most of my family is still sleeping."

"Oh, they're late sleepers like sloths. Actually, I noticed that only Sid sleeps long. I've often saw Brooke at sunrise at..toga..No. Yoga, was it. Wait. Why don't you sleep then?" The prickly one looked at her strangely. Did she say something wrong again?

"So I don't watch anyone secretly or something! It's just the way with.."

"As a Dakotaraptor, you notice things in your environment just very quickly."

"Exactly." She gave a little embarrassed and quieter out, because first, the other already knew more about her species than the other way round. Second, she got louder for nothing again. She knew that has the information because Louis chatted with her brother.

"If you want to know something about me in the future... Of course not exactly about me, but about my species. So if you want to know something about me, that would be fine too... To make a small sentence last longer, you can still ask me in the future, if you want to know something." She turned her head away from him and rolled her eyes over her stupid behavior.

"Once we're there, I'm not a rat!" It came in an almost harsh tone from beside her, so she looked a little puzzled back to the smaller one. He now had his paws crossed and looked at her punishing.

If you could call it that. Did the little creature really believe that he could do something to her with this glance? In their world, their neighbors, who were four times her size, just looked fleetingly at her, and yet she gladly scratched their eyes. Still, the other one just triggered something in her. A voice in her told her, say sorry and that immediately. Weird.

"I know. That before.." But the raptor didn't come to the end of his sentence, as the other's features changed again. Now she was again friendly looked at.

"I am sorry. I only wanted to try it once. You know, overcome habits and boundaries and so on. At some point we'll argue with each other and I wanted to test how you react when I'm angry." Gertie blinked at him for a moment before she started to laugh.

"Hey, I understand, a molehog is not very intimidating." The bigger one tried to control herself quickly.

"Maybe you are if you really freak out, but unfortunately now you're not. On the other claw, still better than Brooke." Because she has never seen the female sloth in any angry state. She would think of more than ten reasons when Sid came across her mind.

"Once her boyfriend put all her work on fire because Sid thought the braided basket was a fire bowl." The Dino could already imagine how the story went out.

"She took Sid's paw and patted it a bit. She was already sorry for that and she apologized to him."

"How brutal." She commented on the whole thing, what she could really imagine with Brooke.

"So Mister molehog, how intimidating I am then?" She then added and acted as if she would attack the other. But Louis only closed his eyes and she stopped with her face right in front of him. His fur moved a bit in the wind because of her wings. The fire in front of them also flickered a little more.

"Yes... That was more impressive." The smaller one said and opened one eye carefully and then the other. Gertie grinned first, but when he suddenly reached for her with his paws, it went away quickly. He pulled something from her beak and she hurried away from him.

"Um..There was only sticking a fish scale." The molehog understood just nothing. First she gets angry and then something like shy. Again she wants to scare him, because he started it and just frightened himself to death. Now she backs away from him and that just because he removed a scale from her beak. Raptors were really complicated. Then it clicked in his upper room.

"Oh, that's what... Well, what only close ones do with you species?! I really didn't want to offend you. Next time I'll say if you still have food on your face." He waved his paws wildly in the air again. They didn't even know each other one day and he had already harassed her. Then the realization hit him, like a snowball from the possums. Gertie is also a girl. So he knew beforehand that she was a female Dakotaraptor, but somehow she never acted like the other female members in the herd. Probably because she only knows the rough nature from her father. Did she ever have a love relationship? So if he asks that, she'll rip off his head.

Maybe he interprets too much into the whole thing and he should really stop hanging out with Katie and Meghan when they chatting about romantic relationship prospects. The two like to analyze the relationships of others in their free time.

"No one else touched me there before." Gertie admitted openly and looked into the fire.

"Could you please yell at me again?" He didn't know if that was what he meant, but that seemed like a better solution to this situation. Her shy voice just didn't fit into an otherwise brutal raptor. An annoyed sigh came from above.

"That's not what you think."

"What am I thinking?" Louis didn't even bother to comment freely from his thoughts. Afterwards he was wrong and then his spines really are stuck between her teeth. He also didn't want to think about what might happen if he was right.

"If little Dakotaraptors still need to be fed, the parents first touch their beaks so the babies know they need to open this to eat. With adults, the instinct is sometimes still there, so just do it again if you want to get bitten." Explained Gertie as neutrally as possible, because of course, raptors also touched the beak in the reproductive act, but she will certainly not tell the embarrassing stuff her new companion.

"OK. Hm, thanks for the warning. That will not happen again. Makes sense, you hatch from eggs and can't drink milk either." The molehog was glad that the conversation went in a different direction.

"You didn't come out of an egg?" He then heard from his friend. At first he thought she was joking, but her face said she meant it all serious.

"No. Most of those up here are mammals." She had no idea what that meant, except perhaps that they were animals who do stuff different.

"What's the point.. I sound stupid, right?!" She said, because he will surely laugh at her now for her ignorance.

"No, that's really alright. How should know it?" He began by explaining how his species comes into this world and how the babies are born blind in the beginning, then drinking milk from their mother until they are old enough to eat more solid food.

"That with the spikes..?"

"What about it? Oh! So they are still soft when molehogs are small." Actually, that's a good question that the others have never asked him before.

"So sloths.."

"Don't come out of an egg either. Although I can somehow imagine it with Sid."

"Mammoths, too."

"No. The eggs must be huge too. "

"I've seen some before, they were so big and that's why I assumed that." She admitted sheepishly. Although the spiny didn't laugh at her, she still felt stupid.

"Possums?"

"Nope. But would be a good explanation why sometimes the two are not quite right in the head. When they were still hanging in the eggshell, someone shook them too hard." At that thought, Gertie also had to grin a little into the fire.

"Also not saber-tooth tigers." Louis shook his head again.

"And weasels?"

"Oh, you mean Buck. No, he is also a mammal. So he himself is a male and can't feed fruits with his body."

"That something could not be right there, I thought to myself before." The raptor knew that this weasel was not really ticking right in the head and everything it did should not be questioned.

"Please kill me if I lose my mind like that too." She said half jokingly, half seriously.

"Only if you do the same for me." Louis answered in the same tone, because he really didn't want to end up as crazy as Buck.

"Agreed." Both nodded their agreement.

"If you want to know more, always out with it. I'm your friend and you can ask me anything you want to know." Because the smaller one didn't want her to feel bad just because she didn't know something. He also didn't know everything, but if he could help then he liked to do it.

"What happens to mammals when a mother disappears after the children are born?" Gertie didn't really know why she had to screw up the good mood. But earlier she had to think of her mother again, but she could only vaguely remember her appearance.

"If you can't find a surrogate mother who can give the little ones milk, then..."

"I understand." Because her little friend didn't have to pronounce it, because it was not a nice topic that she cut there. It was stupid of her to ask that at all, but unfortunately she didn't know what to do next and looked into the flames.

"Gertie?"

"Hm?"

"Is your mother.." The molehog broke off. He was not sure if he was crossing boundaries here. Of course, the others and he already thought about why the dino siblings only showed up here with their dad.

"She is not dead. At least I hope she is not. Honestly, I don't know if she's still alive today. My dad always says she left us and that's the end of the story. Maybe for him. Roger and I always wanted to know more about her. Why she left and all the stuff. Oh wow, now I really enriched our conversation with happiness." She added the last sentence in her normal tone, because she realized that she was already showing weakness.

Your list of how to scare others away is getting longer and longer. Hurriedly she got up and stretched and looked everywhere, except to Louis.

"It's been a long time, not so important at all. My limbs will fall asleep if we stay here forever." To underline that, she moved around the fire a little.

"How was she like?" The question came to her quietly and not at all amusing. She wondered inwardly if she really should talk more about her missing mother. Maybe it was good to get rid of everything that was sitting on her chest. Gertie also found that the prickly was a good listener. But what if he thought differently about her afterwards? Or about her brother. Probably it was better to disclose everything right at the beginning, because if this didn't endure the friendship, it made no sense anyway. She'd really like to fly back to Brooke and ask, but she'd have to explain that with her mother somehow, and she didn't want that either. The molehog was supposed to be the only one she trusted herself with that now. Exactly. She entrusts him with a secret and so you make friends.

Being a loner is not so tragic either, she thought and took another deep breath before she started telling what she still knew from her father and her past. Well, her old man spoke sparse about it. Only when she got older did she understand why. It still hurt her father that his wife just left.

"What?! Wait, take it easy here, because that just gets me mixed up a bit. So you want to tell me that your mother's name is Raz and she's a pirate?!" Listening quietly, the molehog suddenly jumped up shocked and held his head. Did Gertie's mother have anything to do with the pirates of those past days? He didn't know anymore and frankly, he was glad to have handled the chapter in his life. Also the attackers didn't even politely introduce themselves that he knew if someone named Raz was staying among them.

"I know that sounds pretty unbelievable, but my stubborn father doesn't want to talk about it anymore. It's not that important anyway." The raptor said with a shrug. Louis didn't know why, but he saw that this topic still seems very important to her.

"Maybe I'm wrong too." As he said that, he also turned off the fire by throwing dirt on it.

"Huh?" She looked questioningly at the smaller one again, because she didn't know what he wanted to do so suddenly.

"So and now come with me!" After his work, the spiky companion patted his paws off and started to run.

"Hey, what's going on? Where do you want to go now?" She inquired and still ran after him.

"To Shira." The female Dakotaraptor heard and sighed because she didn't really want to spend time with the tigress. She had no grudge against her or something. Shira just made her a little nervous. Worse than her dad when she was still a teenage dino. But then her companion already disappeared in the earth and the whole thing went faster. He's really fast in the earth, she thought, swinging herself in the air so she wouldn't have to jump over anything where Louis just dug under.

When a cave entrance was visible, the other jumped out of the ground again. Probably because they had to go up a bit. A little annoyed, she grabbed the molehog with her foot claws and put it at the top of the ledge to cave. Dropping was probably the correct word, because he rolled a little towards the entrance, until silver-gray paw stopped him. Gertie just wanted to apologize to the smaller one for the rough landing, but when she saw the tigress, the desire for it passed away.

"...Hm, oh hey Shira." Louis greeted the animal he was lying in front of. But he got up quickly. As fast as it gets, if everything is turning in your head. He shook it off and looked again at the dino, who stood really very far away from them.

"Hi you two. Are there any problems?" He heard the big cat say, but she just looked at him in surprise, then at his new friend.

"Oh no! Nothing in that direction." He immediately tried to mitigate the whole thing when he remembered what Shira was thinking. Incidentally, he considered how he again reproduced the thing he had just heard from Gertie.

"I think I heard the opossums crying in fright earlier." The taller one near him spoke, her eyes still on the raptor's back. Somehow he was feeling as if he had missed something. Maybe the idea to come here was not so good. After all, Gertie told her this with her mother in confidence and he immediately babbled it on. But he also felt that he needed to take the small chance that the tigress might know something about a pirate named Raz. Should he have come alone?

"Oh, that. You'll hear those two screaming more often from now on." Honestly, he liked the thought of shocking the twins again. But he could postpone that to another day.

"Then you also got them once?" Inquired the silver-haired big cat

"I had help from Gertie. But that's not why we are here. Um ... I don't really know how to start it. I'll just go, okay? Back when you were a pirate, was there anybody named Raz in your crew?" The last sentence made him sweat a bit and talk faster, both women here understood him very well.

"Why do you want.." But Shira didn't even get to finish her question.

"You were a pirate?" Wanted the dino briskly to know and Louis barely managed to jump aside when the Dakotaraptor jumped in front of the tigress. Now he thought he had made a mistake.

"It's true and I'm not very proud of it. But what do you have to do with Raz?" The molehog knew that the big cat was smart and quickly connected the points. Gertie stared hard at the other for a moment and he was thinking they were about to start a fight. But then words flashed out of the raptor like a geyser and she explained everything Louis had heard beside the fire earlier.

Now he should certainly go because he felt uncomfortable and superfluous. Maybe the conversation between the ladies wasn't meant for his ears either. As soon as he took a step towards the exit, a leg barred his way. This scaly leg already took him back to his previous place, and his new friend did not even look at him. She just kept pouring her heart out with the tigress. Anyway, he guessed it that way. It was good that Diego was not around, he thought a little reassured, than this here certainly looked like the raptor was yelling at tiger's wife.  
In his view, Shira also seemed shocked at the facts that she heard here, but then apparently liked to tell everything that Gertie wanted to know from her.

* * *

"Oh, he's so fluffy and cute." Squealed Katie in a high-pitched tone as Ethan told the rest of his gang that the rat was not really one and that it was named Scrat.

"Yes, just look at the big soft tail. Totally to love and cuddle." Meghan spoke just as ecstatically with the squirrel, who sat between the blond mammoth and her.

"Do you see? The little guy is not so bad at all." Ethan turned to his girlfriend, who still seemed a little offended, because he brought 'the rat' here again.

"Baby replacement." Added Buddy, but none of the ladies paid any attention to him because he often said nonsensical stuff. His red-brown buddy, however, sighed, not wanting the other to spread the issue of children among the girls. Then he had no desire for a long time to have kids here. Then you had to show responsibility and fulfill obligations. No, he really didn't want that.

"Now let me hold it!" Steffie suddenly intervened and simply grabbed Scrat. Well, she reached for the acorn the squirrel hugged all the time. The little guy didn't like that, of course.

"Hey, now I can have him again." But Scrat didn't even come to claim his treasure because Meghan grabbed him by the tail.

"You can't just do that!" Katie intervened and tried to free the little animal from the trunk of her friend.

"Girls, let him down!" However, Ethan was ignored as the woman fought over the cuddly toy.

"What does this thing like so much about that?" Steffie wondered in the background and looked at the acorn, which Scrat still kept an eye on, but he couldn't get rid of the back and forth.

"Stop it now!" Got the head of Brat Pack louder. Only unintentionally, Meghan let go a moment sooner than Katie, and so the saber-toothed squirrel shot into the air.

"Sorry." Both female mammoths said almost simultaneously as they saw the fur animal go down behind the forest.

"At least help me to look for him." Ethan said a little in a bad mood now, because that shouldn't have happened.

"Of course." The blonde wanted to start immediately, but the other two women simply stopped.

"We all go!" Commanded the leader then, because they all needed a walk.

* * *

"Wait." Shira demanded from the molehog, who immediately wanted to disappear again with the raptor. He looked back to the tigress and then to his new friend. Then he understood what the big cat wanted him to do. Gertie needed a moment for herself after such a conversation. As she marched to the edge of the cave, she just did not look like it to him. She also said that they are leaving now. In her 'nice' way.

"Gertie and you spend some time together." The tigress stated and he turned back to her.

"Yes, I know, we don't even match. I mean, I'm just the exercise friend, because she needs some help in this matter." Louis whispered, knowing that the saber-toothed tiger understood that with her good ears. He didn't want to say anything too loud so that the female Dakotaraptor would maybe understand it in the wrong way.

"I'm surprised that something like this is coming from you."

"Hm?"

"Well, with Peaches, the differences didn't bother you, and you've still become best friends."

"That was a little different." Admittedly, the mammoth had no one at her side at that time, as now Gertie.

"Can it be that this fact bothers you?" Inquired the bigger one and briefly showed her claws, so he understood what she meant.

"Yes, these things are pretty sharp, but so far nothing has happened to me. Actually, I thought more about being unfit as a company for her. "

"Now that I think about it, Gavin and Manny are not so different." She looked out again, onto the raptor's back.

"Do you think that because both have a strong protective instinct?" Asked Louis and was pondering about it.

"Exactly. Honestly, I think it's good that she spends some time with you. I hate to say that, but she needs a little distance from her father. Maybe it would have been better for her to get to know her own world alone. But with someone like you by her side, she will not feel too uncomfortable up here." Wow, thought the molehog, feeling a bit taken aback. He knew he was offering his help to Gertie, but the big cat made it sound like he was the only one who could save her in this emergency. It sounded so much, but he didn't really do something about it.

"You thought I would say 'she's not good for you', right?"

"A little bit." He admitted a little ashamed.

"Why?"

"Well, you and Diego protect our homeland from predators and I thought you wanted to warn me or something because she's still new around here." He saw for himself that it didn't really sound like a good explanation.

"Does that have anything to do with Diego's behavior?" She asked.

"Uhm?" He didn't want to upset her now, because Louis really couldn't use that.

"Gertie is a good girl and finally has to come under other animals. My beloved husband of saber-toothed tiger doesn't behave like this around Gavin because he thinks the carnivore might relapse."

"Does he not?" Finally joined the raptor in, which was first lost in thought, but then overheard the two behind her. She was a little pleased that she was praised by the Shira. Somehow that meant something to her.

"No, it really is not. Your dad was just on the same wavelength as Manny from the start, and that bothers Diego a bit."

"Is it not a little silly to be jealous because of that?" Louis inquired, because he couldn't really understand that. Then he thought of his best friend and he felt stupid for the question. Because of course, he knew the feeling too. Apparently the tigress had already seen through him once again. At least that's what happened to him with that piercing look.

"Maybe. But I don't want to keep you two back here anymore. I promised Ellie to help her with something today. So, see you later." With that Shira just jumped off and left the raptor and the molehog alone in front of the cave. Once again, silence entered between them. Examining the spiky one looked up into her face, before he carefully put a paw to her leg.

"Are you ok?"

"I think so." She answered shortly and slowly looked down at him.

"You know what? Actually, I wanted to beat you up before that you tell secret things right away to the next creature. But now I'll make an exception because I could learn more about my mother."

"Does that mean something like 'thank you'?"

"Yeah, damn it." And thoughtlessly Gertie reached fast for the spiky one and knocked him down.

"Ouch!" She scratched herself at his spines and the little guy rolled a little further to a rock wall because of the blow. With his legs up, he looked back at her.

"That's not what I wanted.. You're not Roger. I should know. Did you hurt yourself?" The last sentence was something new for the molehog and also that she took him away from the stones and put them back on his feet.

"Will survive this." Louis said, still holding his head with a sigh.

"Just a fist bump in the future." And he clenched his paw into one. At first she didn't understand what he meant, but then she remembered how Julian always did that with his trunk. So the raptor nudged Louis raised paw lightly with one of her claws. Awkward. Maybe it's going better later.

"It works." Added the spiky one with a smile and the dino was relieved that everything was alright. Before, she was furious that her secret would continue to be chatted out, but when the saber-toothed tiger reported her past, it all made sense and she was glad that her new friend was trying to help her. And so far, they both shared a pleasant time.

* * *

**GrayestLobster7: And so, with Louis and Gertie getting along just fine and getting answers about Gertie's mother, Raz, at the same time, their relationship thickens, and as for Scrat, the Brat Pack, Buddy, and Ethan are trying to find Scrat, since he got flung away. Will Louis and Gertie find all the answers they need? Will Scrat be found in time? Or will he find another family that fits him? Stay tuned in this answer flinging conclusion of "New Love, New Purpose".**

**evil-catgirl: Hey, you reader out there. It will take a while until the next chapter, but in the meantime, you can write us what you think about the story and this couple. We are interested in opinions and constructive criticism here :)**


	4. Chapter 4

"So my little one, here are some fresh fruits. I know you love your acorn, but carrying it around all day doesn't fill your belly." Brooke lovingly cared for a squirrel that literally fell from the sky while she was preparing other things with joy. The little guy did not seem to be injured from the fall, but this experience was certainly very traumatic. Anyway, she believed that. She also asked her boyfriend to take care of the squirrel named Scrat. She learned the name from Ethan, who reticently told his story with an apology what happened to the little one. The cheerful sloth lady told him that he unfortunately can not keep the little one as a pet. But if Scrat likes their herd, he'll stay close. They all can then often see each other and be friends. The red-brown mammoth and the Brat-Pack also wanted to make sure that their little buddy had not hurt himself. Even Steffie worried a little in her own way. The gang and their leaders understood that such a friendship needed time and couldn't be enforced.

Manny had to chat with Ethan because he was a little impressed with how this reacted. Anyway, he thought that the leader of the Brat Pack was slowly growing up. Probably the boy just needed a better role model. Maybe he wasn't the best example, but he could try it.

"Manny. Hey, no hard feelings, right?" Ethan said nervously, because the herd leader could be very strict sometimes.

"Not at all. I assume you came looking for the little squirrel?" Wanted the older mammoth to know.

"Yes exactly. And his name is Scrat."

"OK. I heard he fell from the sky. What have you done again? You argued and then he was shot in the air?" Manny felt the eyes of his wife on his back, so he could not get angry.

"It was an honest accident." Ethan tried again to apologize.

"Hey, you tried your best, and that's what mattered. Right, little buddy?" Said the older one, stroking Scrat lightly over the fur that was sitting on Ethan's head all the time. The squirrel confirmed with a nod, even though he was not really listening.

"Yeah, I suppose." Gave the younger mammoth out with a relief from sight and smiled a little, because he was glad that Manny was not mad.

"He's got a point, you know?" Katie added and wasn't daring to comment on it sooner.

"I know that." Ethan sighed, because the girls are getting involved again.

"You'll come through eventually." Manfred told with a smile and Ethan suddenly saw that he really was more respected.

"But, just be happy that you and your friends can visit him every once in a while." Now the mammoth mother came along too.

"Maybe tomorrow morning?" Ethan inquired with a pleading face. Ellie just shrugged because it was not for her to decide that. It was up to Scrat. And of course it would please the squirrel. That's why he nodded happily.

Brooke always liked to see how everyone in her big family understood each other. No one long had a grudge against someone else when there were problems or misunderstandings. It was no wonder that she felt so well at the side of her beloved Sid, as she had not felt for a long time. Her dream sloth also seemed to like the saber-tooth squirrel, because whenever they were together, they played nice together.

She couldn't know that the scenes are almost staged. Because Scrat remembered the stupid sloth with bad breath very well. He also liked the angelic animal that everyone called Brooke, so there was no place for someone like Sid in his eyes. Thus, the two first argued, where it only went, who was good enough for the attention of the beautiful Brooke. This lasted so long that even the older mammoth couple saw something of it. Manny didn't care with whom buddy fought. Finally, Sid also argues with dung beetles. But Ellie realized that it was better for the herd peace to explain a few things to the squirrel. She also thought she had seen Scrat somewhere before, but couldn't remember exactly where. Since she was very well acquainted with small animals, the little guy understood quite quickly how he had to behave here from now on, if he wanted to stay in this place.

After Sid and the new rodent in the family more or less got along, the squirrel finally thought to have found something like a real home in the area. Of course, a certain sloth had to beg Manny if he could keep the pet, even though it had previously been declared that Scrat couldn't be put on a liana and the little guy had his own head.

Manfred still claimed that Sid had to take care of it when the new 'pet' left dirt around. You could tell that the male sloth didn't really like this, but he tried to hide it behind a smile as he pulled out a half-eaten acorn. He also wanted to know what's so great about the things. This tasted for him but rather awful. But Sid didn't care as long as the little guy was happy with it. In addition, acorns kept Scrat away from his Brooke. Of course, the rodent didn't want to accept this gift. The female sloth just smiled at the two and swapped the bitten acorn, against an intact one.

"You don't like either when your fruits are half eaten." She said to her sloth and scratched Scrat again over his head. This enjoyed it with closed eyes and cuddled with his new acorn. Sid looked a little jealous, but then he also got pats, until his wife said they had to get to work. They all had a lot to do today to prepare the big party for two newly in love ones and the squirrel should have the opportunity to get to know all of their herd and surroundings.

* * *

"Come back now, you stupid idiot!" Gertie shouted after her brother as loud as she could because he had been secretly watching her and her boyfriend. Since when did Roger fly so fast, she wondered, but also kept an eye out for not throwing her little passenger from her back. With whom she was very close at the moment. They didn't spend much time together, but they knew they were in love. Gertie's heart was still pounding wildly in her chest, just from the touch before.

"It's cute that you kissed someone for the first time!" It came from the other Raptor and that just made her madder. On the other claw, she would never have dreamed that Louis would share something as intimate as a kiss with her. Before that, she thought they were good buddies or something, and then the spiky one shocked her so beautifully. She probably should have thought something of it as he climbed on a rock in front of her and instructed her to come closer, smiling. But then her stupid brother unfortunately destroyed the greatest moment in her life.

"That was not a kiss!" She declared loudly. At least that would have taken longer to be named like that. Exactly, she didn't know it.

"Wasn't it?" She heard from the molehog who was still sitting on her back.

"No! So, yes. I think... I don't know. Maybe. But my stupid brother doesn't have to tell my dad right away." Her head felt so warm in the cold temperatures up here in the upcoming conversation with the older Dakotaraptor.

"You peeper! Can't you just find your own romance to annoy our father!" She rather thoughtlessly called after him and her brother laughed happily.

"That's so nice to witness. So you are already a couple. I don't know why you want to keep it a secret longer? Everyone should learn about your great luck." The smaller Dakotaraptor announced joyfully and kept evading his sister in the air by looping.

"..all will be happy for you. Is it not right, Brooke? The two, that's so wonderful." The female sloth stood on a ledge and happily threw flowers at them as the raptors flew around her.

"Young love, is so beautiful.." Sid started a song and Gertie rolled her eyes, while she noticed that the smaller one on her back, pressed his face with shame in her scales.

"Only this two are not so bad." Louise whispered to his dino girl.

"Listen everybody, there are new lovers in the valley." Roger announced as loud as he could with rolled-up leaves that reinforced his voice.

"Where did that stupid guy get that now?" The female Raptor, for the first time, couldn't believe she couldn't catch her brother. She thought he had secretly practiced. Although she wanted to discuss with the molehog more, if they give up the chase, but then she heard many animals in one place chatting and the Dakotaraptor in front of her, seemed to fly right there.

"Oh, no!" She said startled, as it dawned on her what was happening.

"What's going on?" Louis inquired in confusion, though he also heard many animals. Many voices were already very familiar to him. Was a feast planned in their surroundings and he had forgotten it because he was busy with other things and feelings? That's never happened to him before. Had it got him so hard? Everything felt so good and right. He didn't even notice how quickly the nice time with Gertie passed. With her everything is so great and yet different, as with his first love. Yes, there are still some concerns, but he doesn't want to listen to them, if they stand up for him just as much as the other way round.

"That's a stupid trap!" Answered his girlfriend. Girlfriend? They both have not talked about it directly, but it sounds nice.

"Wait what?" He panicked as he understood her words and he looked around. Just then he noticed that Gavin came flying fast closer. He seemed in a bad mood. At least this gave away the face of the Dakotaraptor. The prickly one's knees trembled a little, for he had not even thought of the father of his new love the whole time, though she mentioned him here and there. Nevertheless, it didn't occur to him that he had to oppose this Raptor as well. He was easily resentful that a father to boyfriend conversation could take place faster than he would like.

But then the molehog noticed that Gavin was also carrying someone on his back. If he is not mistaken, this animal was a well-known weasel.

"Well, guys, you've fallen into a trap. And then the youth claims she was smarter than the older generation. Nope, not really." Buck called to them, laughing, before Gavin could tell his daughter they were going down in front of them now. The female Raptor felt an oppressive feeling in her stomach, at the look of her father.

"I can explain that, Dad." She tried to soften her old man before everything escalated. Will he not accept Louis? Is she excluded from the family? Could she still call him father? These and other questions just popped through her mind as she approached the ground. One paw from her boyfriend, she hoped she could call him that, squeezed her shoulder and reassured her that she must not do it alone. There was now somebody in her life who didn't leave her alone. She hoped that stuff that was coming wouldn't destroy their relationship yet, which is still in its beginning and could be fragile. She shouldn't think too much about that.

"You don't have to. Do you think your old man is blind and doesn't see what you are doing behind his back?!" Both raptors landed on the ground, but Gertie kept distant from her father because she didn't know if he wanted to hurt her boyfriend. Louis himself hurriedly jumped off of her, not to hide, but to face the older Dino like a real man. Even Gavin had not expected that and was a little surprised when he shook off the weasel because it didn't went down by itself.

"Of course not, Dad." Gertie said after exchanging a look with the molehog to make things sure.

"I know we shouldn't have been so secretive about it. We are really sorry too." The prickly one began to speak first. He stood there with his head raised, even though his knees were softening. But he had to go through this. Better sooner than later. Julian was right there, but he was too relaxed about it. He was still not sure if Manny really liked his son-in-law. Luckily, Louis got along very well with the male mammoth. Which also made it easier to let go of Peaches and fall in love again. He also wasn't thinking it would be a Dakotaraptor, but he just felt so good at being with her. When she felt the same, everything seemed to be ok. For now.

"But at first we were not sure if... Well, if a love relationship could work out between us."

"We didn't want to tell everyone right away if it did not work." Gertie told her brother emphatically when he grinned and hid behind her father with innocence. There was a gasp from the oldest Raptor, and he looked down grimly at the molehog. He really wanted to run away or at least to dig a tunnel, but then he would be a coward again and this times should be over.

"Gertie, you're old enough to know what you're doing. But if this guy dares to hurt your feelings, I'll extinguish his species." That was clear, Louis thought, swallowing as the sharp claw was pulled away, what was pointing very close to him before. He shook it off. At least he tried.

"Maybe we'll have some disagreements, but I still will not easily give up my love for her." The smallest in the round believed he was making his point well, than his voice didn't even tremble.

"Meus Deus." Buck mingled with the silence as everyone looked in astonishment at the molehog. Even the female Raptor was a bit embarrassed, but she found the words of her boyfriend just as beautiful. She just was not used to hear that loud and clear in public.

"Come on, Daddy. Give yourself a jerk and have a clash with the boy. So in your case, you touch his paw quite easily.." But the weasel was grimly interrupted.

"Shut up! I know how to do that." Complained Gavin and nodded to Louis, what the smaller returned immediately. Both knew that they had time to work on it, if the relationship worked out.

"Say, didn't you hear that we're waiting for you over there?" Sid inquired, suddenly appearing in their midst.

"Louis has just really declared his love for my sister in front of us all." Roger babbled fidgety.

"Meus Deus." Rejoiced the sloth and Buck hopped on him.

"My saying! But I hope you have prepared food for the love feast as well." He then pointed forward and hit Sid slightly like he always did with the dinosaurs. But then he noticed the smell of the body and jumped off again.

"What kind of party?" Gertie glanced at her boyfriend again, before she looked questioningly at the others.

"That's what your brother organized to make it easier for you to open the herd." Brooke, who also emerged from the undergrowth and simply pulled the female Raptor along. Roger got another poisonous look from his sister, so he knew there was still trouble later. Louis and Sid quickly followed their ladies.

"Oh, how nice Gavin. They are growing up so fast. First you'll get a son-in-law and soon grandchildren." Buck said, moved and Roger joined in. The oldest Dakotaraptor snorted annoyed and pushed the two aside, because he didn't want to deal with such thoughts now. Had he only found out this morning that his only daughter has a boyfriend. And he expected something completely different.

The other two also followed Gavin because they didn't want to miss out on the party. Maybe other love secrets will be revealed.

Yes, the two newly in love marveled already, as on the place were really all who they both know. They got flower chains on the neck.

"This is going to be embarrassing. From tomorrow I'm an only child." Said the female Raptor to her boyfriend in an annoyed tone.

"I know he just wanted to do something nice for us, but I'll help you get rid of the body anyway." Louis added almost as annoyed and embarrassed as the whole valley was probably here to celebrate their love.

"Maybe only someone has a birthday party." He tried to explain the matter somehow.

"Yes, that's why everyone is staring at us. It is not my big day. Yours?" Gertie knew that he would deny it, so she kept babbling.

"We separate again."

"What?" The spiky one shouted in shock, looking up at her.

"Only a bogus. I just can't do this here." She explained quickly and reassuringly.

"Then your father eats me. I am in this situation, too."

"Oh yes, my dad still doesn't stop to look at you in killer mode. We'll have to take revenge on Roger and get him coupled up soon."

"Right. But together we'll be going through this." These words from the molehog helped both of them a little bit.

"Yeah, but I do NOT give you any stupid nicknames." She explained quickly, because that isn't just like they are.

"Thanks, I'm really relieved." He answered and really felt like that too. They were still standing at the edge and the others from the herd, pretending they were doing something else while they waited for them. Louis and Gertie looked at each other for a moment.

"This is our party, so how about we both celebrating these 'in love' properly?" The Dino suggested and grinned a little nasty. Louis liked where that went.

"Of course, my uh... lovey-scaly babe?"

"That must sound more dripping of love, my spiked-plush-heart." Both tried to stop laughing as they whispered ideas and gradually walked over to the others to give the party a loving spark.

* * *

**Post Credit Scene:**

"Did you really have to bring the others to do such a party?" Louis inquired of his probably future brother-in-law, after a few days passed and everyone calmed down again. Granted, they both had fun. Just not the way like the others of the herd thought.

"You don't know how it used to be down there, so many handsome and tall dino men wanted Gertie." Answered Roger and the smaller one didn't really know if he wanted to hear that now. But he had to spend some time with someone else today, because he didn't want to be the only one, who did something with Gertie. Eventually, she had to learn to spend time with others, perhaps realizing how real her feelings really are for him. The molehog was aware of his feelings, but was afraid that his girlfriend was misinterpreting something just because he was her first real friend on the world up here. It still wasn't easy for her to befriend others.

"Your father has rejected them all." At least the prickly one thought of Gavin like this.

"No one is good enough for his only daughter, but our laws would have required someone to injure my father or even kill him to go out with Gertie." The Raptor quietly continued to explain, as if it were normal.

"Good that I don't have to do that." Louis added, trying to suppress emerging images in his mind.

"But since we chat so nicely now, we can exchange a few habits." Spoke out his opponent while they both dangled their legs in a creek because they couldn't really think of anything else.  
"Why not." It was always good for the spiky one to learn something about his girlfriend and her race.

"If a Dakotaraptor wants to mate, then.." A loud cough interrupted the Dino.

"Could you skip this part first, we're not that far yet." He explained embarrassed and the topic was just really fast changed by the Raptor. From killing to intimate cuddling. Well, the Dino didn't care how he grew up and his girlfriend either. It would take a long and rocky road for the molehog, but so far, some had already been worthwhile. Just because his love is accepted this time made it a lot easier for him.

"Nice hustle, Louis. Maybe you and Gertie will get married soon." Then the little one had to cough again, because that he would now be teased a bit, he wouldn't have guessed.

"Let's not rush this, okay? I'm not clingy like Sid and we're still young." Louis answered with an embarrassed smile.

"Of course you are not like that. My dad made you nervous anyway." He would make anyone nervous, the spiky one thought more to himself.

"Nervous, me? Never. I've long since abandoned such fearfulness. Well at least I tried to live this way after the adventure with this pirates and a captain named Gutt.

"Captain Gutt?"

"Yes, that's the name of the guy."

"THE Captain Gutt?!"

"Yes, Gertie and I found out that your mother was on his ship, too. Didn't she tell you about that?" The molehog thought for a moment whether he should continue to speak, perhaps his girlfriend had reasons to not tell her brother.

"Her name was Raz and she was a kangaroo." Roger looked a bit distracted away and the smaller one didn't really know what to do next, but answered nevertheless.

"Yeah."

"Now I remember who she is, but where could she possibly be?" Louis looked at the question in the water.

"Beats me."

* * *

Scrat, on the other paw, had a lot of variety with his new family. It was no longer just about finding acorns and hiding them for the next winter or emergency. If one of them got lost, he could always run to his favorite sloth and get a new one. Brooke was angelic to him and always smelled nice of flowers. He would like to stay close to her to be petted and fed by her all day.

Unfortunately, a stinking something kept constantly in their vicinity, which made the stay not always great. Unhappily, it seemed that Sid was her partner, and if he tried to get rid of the ugly sloth, the beauty one would be sad. Scrat didn't really want that either. So he spent his time elsewhere too.

He couldn't do anything with the saber tooth tigers, so he mostly ignored the two. The possums were too silly for him and always wanted to steal his acorn. They should you look for their own stuff. These dinosaurs also had too sharp teeth that he could stay in their vicinity for a long time. Then this half-blind weasel, where he never understood what the animal actually talked about. It was probably crazy. This purple sloth and her bunny were that in his eyes, so he also made a way around them. The little prickly one was really nice to him, but unfortunately he is probably completely blind, because he seems to be in love with a Raptor.

Then only the mammoths left, who more or less liked to spend time with him and teach him something. He just had to be careful not to get stepped on. Just like before. In panic, he just runs away without paying attention to the way. This Steffie doesn't have to scream all the time when she sees him. But he just wanted to the leader of this mammoth group anyway. They called themselves the Brat-Pack. Why, he doesn't know. Well, that's their problem as well.  
Now he jumps back to the pretty Brooke. Finally, he didn't really want to miss her delicious meal.

* * *

No one in the valley sensed that they were all being watched by someone else. Someone who had nothing good in mind and wanted to change their lives as they all knew it. Maybe this mysterious figure even planned the end of some creatures. Drones, which almost looked like clocks, served to spy on the herd and the environment. Everything these little machines watched was transferred to a screen on an unknown location. At this place, someone sat in the shadow of a huge hourglass. The screening ended and a bad laugh went through the place that didn't promise much except bad changes.

**The end (for this story :)**

**Questions, thanks and credit goes to GrayestLobster7 for helping me very much with this story. Please leave a few comments because I really want to know what you out there think about this here.**

****GrayestLobster7**:And so, with Louis and Gertie finally in a relationship and Scrat found himself a loving family, everyone is happy, but a mysterious threat is among them, but who or what is it? Find out soon in the next story, "The Rainbow Berry Incident".**

**Side Note: In the meantime, there will be some spinoffs for each story, so be on the lookout for those.**


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